Silverthorn, better called Elina, entered the guild WHISPERED BLADES. The pale moonlight couldn't let others know that she was here. In the corner of a quiet street, she slipped beyond the stone walls, into a narrow alley invisible to the ordinary eye. How could it be seen? An illusion spell cloaked its very existence. A common passerby would see nothing but a wall.

She knocked the door in a specific rhythm—tap, pause, tap-tap, tap.

The door cracked open. A woman stepped into view- emerald eyes sharp with worry that softened the moment they met hers.

"You are late." said the voice firmly.

" Yeah, I know." A brief moment of silence followed. "Sorry, Eve."

Evelyn stepped back to let her in. Her long black hair fell over one shoulder, and her clothes were simple but elegant, with small accessories that lent her a quiet, noble-like grace.

The sisters embraced, the hug firm and full of unspoken things.

"Did someone try to follow you again?" Evelyn asked while checking the windows.

"Obviously they can't, I used Umbral Cloak. Anyways, this place is invisible to normal eyes. It's casted with my magic barrier, so you don't need to check the windows, hah."

Evelyn glared at her but those eyes still felt comforting somehow.

"You don't need to force yourself, Elina. You know you can't make me smile this time. So at least, don't pressurize yourself." said the faint voice which sounded so fragile as if it would break any second.

"The same goes for you." said Elina.

Another moment of silence dropped. 

"Say, what you are holding within those pretty eyes of your? You know you can be honest, at least with me."

Elina sighed. She sat down, and finally said, "It was hard... being there again. Where they..."

"I know," Evelyn said, sitting beside her and placing a hand on hers. "I saw the crowd's faces. They didn't mourn. They celebrated."

Elina's hands curled into fists. "They don't know. They never cared to know. But I will find the truth. I'll make sure our family didn't die for nothing."

"You don't have to carry it alone," Evelyn said firmly. "We're both what's left of Nightwhispers along with Thalidor. Don't shut us out."

Elina blinked, surprised by the emotion in her voice. Evelyn rarely broke composure.

"Here, take this" Elina said while giving that pendant to Evelyn. 

Evelyn's eyes widened. "It's..."

"Mother's," Elina said, cutting her off gently.

They sat in silence for a while, warmth against the cold weight of memory.

"Elina! You're there, right?" asked a heavy voice.

"Ah! I'll be gone now, Thalindor's calling."

Evelyn pressed a smile and watched Elina vanish into the night's darkness.

A knock at the door.

Elina entered her brother's- the man known as the guild's owner- private chamber.

"You're back early," he said.

"Did you watch?" she asked.

He hesitated, the red in his eyes flickering faintly under the low lantern light. "No. Not after what they did."

Then he placed a sealed letter on the table. "Another mission. High-paying. Direct from the Crimson Court."

"Let me guess," she said, voice dry. "Find the lost heir."

"...Yes."

"Accepted."

----------------------------------------

Elina stood before the cracked mirror in her private quarters, pulling off the honey-blonde wig with a tired sigh. Her pitch black hair shimmered in the low lantern light, falling like night sky over her shoulders.
Blue eyes shifted to golden without those enchanted lenses.

She changed into more comfortable clothes, letting herself breathe for the first time in hours.

She threw herself on her bed. It was a horrible day after all she had to see with her very own eyes. 

"Hah... Look at me. My parents died protecting something so important... and here I am, lying in bed like nothing happened. Not even knowing why they had to die..."

A tear rolled out from her eyes

And then, like a child worn out from weeping, she slept.

Peacefully.
Because today had been a long, heavy day.